Paranubes is produced in a small, family-run distillery in the southern Mexican state ofOaxaca, using organic cane grown on the 14-hectare estate.
The freshly hand-cut cane juice ferments for 48 hours in 2 x 1100-liter pine vats. The vat is never completely emptied once the cane wine has fermented: only half is distilled, while the other half is left in the vat to be refilled with fresh cane juice, and the natural yeast does the work without the need for any additional yeast. When a new fermentation cycle begins, two handfuls of boiled mezquite bark (or prosopis, a tree known for its therapeutic virtues and found in arid Mexican areas) kick-start the fermentation process.
Distillation takes place in a copper column. Heads and tails are not removed (due to the absence of methanol).
No reduction is made: Master Distiller Jose Luis Carrera blends the heart, heads and tails of the distillate to obtain the desired 54%. A maximum of 85 liters of this rum can be produced per day.
Nico's tasting notes
In brief: sweet cane juice - herbs - exotic fruits - fondant
Le nez est très souple et nous installe dans une ambiance cotonneuse et confortable. Ses arômes singuliers et doucement végétaux pourraient rappeler le maïs doux. Toujours dans un registre végétal très doux et singulier à la fois, on cueille quelques aromates au caractère soyeux et sucré. Le jus de canne tout juste pressé est épais et consistant, trouble et gorgé de sucre. Les fruits exotiques bien mûrs caressent le nez avec leurs senteurs veloutées.
L’aération amène davantage de vivacité, on revient à une canne plus « agricole », plus poivrée et paillée. Puis le rhum s’arrondit et surprend de nouveau, avec une tomate cuite, sucrée et légèrement relevée, presque comme un ketchup épicé. La fermentation fait parler les notes les plus lourdes et humides de champignon et de sous-bois.
On the palate, the entry is fairly straightforward, the heavy, earthy character filling the palate with subtle notes of black olive. The rum melts its pepper and leather flavors with good texture, with exotic fruits such as papaya and guava echoing this sensation of thickness. The cane is full-bodied and fragrant.
On the finish, a few ethereal notes leave a peppery veil on the taste buds, with a hint of herbs and resin.
« Une expression originale de la canne à sucre, surprenante, très naturelle et très facile à boire… »
To complement our detailed note, you can find the impressions we had during our first tasting of this superb rum at Whisky live 2017
